Weary, Worn, But Still Sharp
by Scholar of Time
Summary: Madeline Westen is a typical Floridian - except for the fact that her son is a spy...right?    Rated T for slight language - may be M in later chapters
1. Chapter 1: Hidden Feelings

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Burn Notice. No profit, save for emotional catharsis, is gained from this story.

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"Michael, you can't keep running to Vaughn for your answers….everytime you do, you're running farther away from me!"

Fiona Glenanne, former IRA "specialist" and current part-time gun-runner, finally had had enough of her on/again - off/again boyfriend/fiancé/partner's seeming desire to never let go of what had become an ever-widening struggle to regain his former status as a professional spy – a position she felt was destroying Michael in the first place. Their latest foray with Jesse and Sam had reignited the argument in Michael's mother's dining room.

"Fi, I can't just let these people destroy innocent lives to widen their pocketbooks!", Michael replied, "Vaughn may be a snake, but we're both after the same thing."

"Every time you say that, Michael, I'm not sure you're the same man I …you know that he's a murdering psychopath – and coming from me, that's saying something." countered Fiona.

Michael looked at her as though he was frustrated with the entire world that she couldn't understand his position – she in turn looked at him with sadness for his blindness to what was right in front of him. The two left the room simultaneously, unable to stand the tension between them. Unbeknownst to either of them, someone had been listening in the kitchen.

"Michael…I thought I had raised you better than that…", softly whispered Madeline Westen. She lit up another cigarette and turned to the kitchen window, bracing herself on the counter below.

'I never thought that you would grow up to be….in that business', she silently pondered. She knew she had hidden things from him, had played the fool more than once…but she had grown softer as she grew older, and she hadn't had to try too hard to 'play' soft for a long time. Her joints reminded her everytime she moved, that she wasn't as able as she used to be.

"To Hell with that!", she exhaled furiously, "I may not be in the best condition, but I've still got the Will of Fire in me!". Maybe one day, she'd tell her son what she was before she had met Frank – before she had been cashiered out of her only home. In retrospect, it was only natural she had attached herself to a – she had to admit it to herself, if no-one else – scumbag like Frank; she had spent years with abusive, manipulative personalities all around her – one more was just like a reminder of home.

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Well, this is the first chapter of my first fanfic! I hope it's pleasant, at the very least. Reviews are very welcome, and I appreciate any feedback I get. I don't promise to use every idea I hear, but I'll be sure to give them great attention and full credit if I do.


	2. Chapter 2: Old Memories

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Burn Notice. No profit, save for emotional catharsis, is gained from this story.

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Madeline watched with a jaundiced eye on the proceedings before her – Michael to the left of her line of sight, leading the discussion about some gala opening and fake ID's that Sam needed to acquire. The raised voices once again told her, as they had so many times before, that her son was going to do something that she would have died before doing in her previous life – leave his comrades to fight on his own. She couldn't understand how he got that way…oh, it was true he had a hard childhood – forced to do things on his own, figure his own way out of trouble. Maybe it was the fact that he protected Nate, and didn't team up with Nate. 'Really, Maddie…,' she told herself, 'You know why he is how he is…you hid your past and your so-called prowess in order to keep him and his brother safe, but in the end…all you did was leave him unprepared.'

"Ha!", exclaimed Madeline. The others turned around, seeing her in the room for the first time – yet never questioning how she managed to sneak up on four "highly-trained professionals". Madeline quickly cursed her slip-up, and re-entered her cover.

"Sorry….Didn't mean to disturb…whatever it is you're doing..", she interjected, with a noticeable glance towards the table and its contents.

Michael, as she knew he would, turned to her and said;

"Mom, I know you want to help -,"

"I've helped before, haven't I?" she interrupted – at the same time reflecting on the hurt she had inflicted on Tina for those documents, how she wouldn't have hesitated or regretted a thing a lifetime ago, and how truly clueless her son could be at times.

"Yes, Mom", Michael said in a long-suffering tone, "but this time, we're completely fine. Really. Everything's going just the way we want it to."

Madeline let him off with some saccharine platitude that even she didn't pay attention to…all the while, thinking on how badly a plan where "everything's going the way we want it to" would fail. She had been on more than a few…'No, no, I'm not going to think about that', she internally rebuked herself. She hadn't thought of herself as anything but Madeline Westen for many years – and Madeline was quite enough just by herself to be getting on with. There was no real need, she reassured herself, that anything other than Madeline should be considered anymore.

The plan which Madeline was so worried about, and was desperately trying not to think about, consisted of three parts. Michael was to engage the target, an operative whom they had identified as being part of the planning team involved in the failed heist of Simon's bible, at a gala opening for a new business union's building in Miami. Sam's job was to get ID cards for Michael and Fiona, on the off-chance Michael needed backup – so far, it was proving near-impossible to get them. Jesse had, meanwhile, done a preliminary scouting of the building, which had turned up some interesting news.

"Sam," Michael asked," how can you not have gotten the ID cards for the gala opening? It's not like it's a high-security governmental office building."

It was at this point that Jesse entered the house with a brief greeting, and began to inject his own information into the group brain-storming session.

"Oh, Michael….you might just be wrong there…", Jesse gloated.

"These are the plans for building…it took me five hours, and one very 'upstanding' guard just to find out where they were being held – and I don't think I could have gotten in there even when I had my old job. I managed to get hold of these from one of the sub-contractor's buildings. Michael…this building's tighter than the Super-max in Coleman – every door's got laser temperature sensors, and automatic deadlock doors made of 10in steel!"

Michael and the other members of the group looked stunned for a brief second, before beginning to throw ideas off each other as to how they might circumvent the security. After two or three hours of circular arguments, they finally decided to take a break for the day and continue in the morning. As they left, Madeline came in to take the various plates and dishes that everyone but Fiona and Jesse had left on the table. She was picking up Sam's plate of half-eaten pizza when her eyes stumbled across the design of the building and the name of the organization that was hosting the gala – the Accountants' National Business Union. The only saving grace at that moment, was that Sam hadn't used her good china.

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The second chapter is up...about an hour after the first. I hope it's okay...Reviews, as always, are more than welcome!


	3. Chapter 3: Old Habits

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Burn Notice. No profit, save for emotional catharsis, is gained from this story.

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The next morning hadn't brought any new ideas to the "planning table", around which the group was gathered. The normal noise and bustle that was expected in the house had, unnoticed by anyone, been reduced by the amount of sound that one person might make. Madeline had been thinking, and planning, all night about what to do regarding Michael's inadvertently-planned brush with the ANBU.

'I can't just tell him that I'm – that I was a shinobi, of all things! He'd think I was hallucinating, or poisoned, or who knows what else! I also can't dissuade him from pursuing the target...', thought Madeline, already slipping back into comfortable thought patterns from her youth, 'But! I can remove those damn "horse blinders" from his eyes and show him an alternate strategy…he'll believe I've stumbled across it, as usual.'

Madeline walked from her room to the dining room, where Michael and Fiona were – as usual – arguing about some facet of the plan. Sam and Jesse, looking somewhat detached from this particular argument, were alternating between glaring at the building plans and scarffing pizza.

"Michael – ", she began to speak, at which point all of them jumped in startlement at her sudden interjection. It was at this point that Madeline realized she had not only slipped into comfortable thoughts, but into her old, silent way of walking.

"Mom! Don't sneak up on us like that!", Michael exclaimed, "We're trying to work here!"

"Michael, how did your mother just do that?" Fiona idly questioned, "I didn't even hear her coming…"

Madeline took the opportunity to rebuke her son, and thereby distract Fiona from a far-too-pertinent question.

"Michael! This is my house! If you're 'working' here, you can damn well 'put up with me'!"

At this, Michael looked contrite and attempted to pacify his mother, but she wasn't listening – while her eyes engaged her son, all her true attention was on Fiona…on whether or not she had successfully diverted her.

"Michael…let's get back to planning, Sorry about that, Madeline,…as you know, Michael can be a bit jumpy when he doesn't get his morning yogurt." Fiona reassured Madeline with a smile.

"So, Michael..."said Madeline, "It looks like you're trying to break into a building."

"No, Mom…", disagreed her son, "we're trying to talk with someone, and we need to get into the building to do that. There's a lot of security, and it's very difficult" he continued in a condescending manner

At this point, Madeline made her "unimportant" suggestion:

"Well, why don't you get to him outside the building?"

All four members of Michael's group of friends, himself included, stopped for a moment – and then began to plan out how they would get to the target without going in the building. Madeline made her exit, once again relegated to merely part of the wallpaper – knowing her plan was a success.

'That brings a whole bunch of other concerns to mind, though', she considered, "if the man – or woman – they're looking for is allowed in a regional ANBU headquarters…it's more than likely he's involved in ANBU business…'

Madeline hurried upstairs, once again silent as the grave, and proceeded to get the vacuum cleaner and bring it to her room.

"Michael!", she shouted, partially feigning continued annoyance with him, "I'm going to start cleaning upstairs…sorry about the noise!"

Plugging in the vacuum cleaner, she let it run in the corner of her bedroom, while she moved the bed to the side and accessed the floor underneath. After removing a loose floorboard, she uncovered a flat metal square – well-remembered by her, even though she hadn't opened it in more years that she would ever admit to. She placed her hand on it, and for the first time since Michael was born, chakra energy flowed through her with a purpose. It took a long time to generate the necessary amount…'a lot longer than it should, but then if I could do that still…'

The safe opened, its seal de-activated; within it, on top of scrolls, clothing, and several metal objects – was a painted mask.

"Not today, Neko-chan…," she whispered. As she brushed aside her mask and accoutrements, she found the unopened scroll she had come looking for. The scroll which would allow her to get the information she needed, sealed with an unbroken wax insignia – shaped like a stylized leaf.

Madeline began to wrap the metal objects, now clearly identifiable as kunai, in a scarf and placed them in her handbag – the clothes, she stuffed underneath her dresser.

"Hopefully," she breathed out, "I won't need to use them…but as Ibiki always told me, it's just a matter of time."

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Third chapter complete! I know, short chapters - but I'm about to re-enter college, so it might take me a while to get anything else up...this is fun though!


	4. Chapter 4: Hidden Meanings

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Burn Notice. No profit, save for emotional catharsis, is gained from this story.

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After Madeline had prepared herself mentally as much as possible for her – hopefully brief – reentry into the shadow world, she turned off the vacuum she had used as a noise generator. Grabbing her handbag, she went down the stairs and walked out the door, shouting over her shoulder, "I'm going to my bingo friend Tessa's for lunch!". She moved out the door quickly – but not too quickly - in order to avoid the others, but Michael managed to intercept her.

"Mom… since you're going out, can you drop me off at the loft – Sam's taking the car to scout out where our new friend Mr. Satou lives", he said.

'Perfect!', Madeline thought, 'That boy really needs to learn to keep his witty mouth shut – I just got a name, more than likely false, and a gender.'

Aloud, she said," Sure! I guess Tessa can wait a little while – but I'm not picking you up! That's what you've got the Charger for!,"

"But, Mom-"

"Ah-ahah!"

The two of them drove to the loft, where Madeline quickly got him out of the car. She drove down two blocks in the direction of Tessa's, then changed direction towards her true destination – Alice Wainwright Park. The night before, she had sent a message via some of the local birds she had caught and trained for a meeting with a regional officer; hopefully – even if it was a slim chance – there would be no connection between the ANBU and this "Mr. Satou". Madeline arrived shortly before 1:00 pm, and made her way to the northern corner of the park.

'Anbu-san!', she shouted, "I have the scroll which delineates my status as a retired-nin of the Leaf." Having said this, she placed the scroll on the ground and moved back 10 paces. After a few minutes, the scroll was suddenly replaced with a log – not that Madeline expected any other occurrence. A short time later, the ANBU officer stepped out from behind the trees which had concealed him.

"Westen-san, what are you doing here? If you've come for reactivation, you should know better…", the ANBU officer proclaimed.

At this, Madeline lit up her cigarette and calmly stated, "A chuunin like you shouldn't be so cocky with a Tokubetsu Jounin – even a cashiered one!"

She pointed down, where interwoven thin wires were concealed by leaves, all covered by papers…which upon further investigation by the ANBU officer, turned out to be explosive notes. The ANBU chuunin, obviously afraid for his life – but willing to die for his people if Madeline had suddenly turned traitor – gathered up his courage and asked her, "Why did you send that letter – just to kill a chuunin?"

Madeline laughed at this, "The trap's not for you, idiot – it's for whoever drops by uninvited. The pattern's the standard used for bait traps; if anyone followed you, we become the bait, the directionally-explosive tags go off, and they become the deceased!"

At this, the young chuunin bowed his head in recognition of a master. He had heard of the Interrogation & Trap specialist Madeline Westen, but was surprised by the wiliness that she showed given her age.

"That'll teach you to drop your guard around 'old ladies', won't it sonny?"

"Hai. I had thought, due to your debilitating accident during your last mission in Oto no Kuni, that you would be unable to use any significant techniques – I had only thought of chakra, not of your own ingenuity."

Madeline looked at him smugly, and said, "Well, if we're both done with our little measuring contest…how's about that information I wanted?"

The chuunin brought out a heavy-looking file from his vest, marked with the kanji for "Mr. Satou". As soon as Madeline took it, the chuunin used the Shunshin jutsu to leave. Having acquired what she came to, she returned to her car, and drove eastwards to a Japanese restaurant an acquaintance had suggested. She still had one contact left to deal with for now, and he had a preference for that place's ambience – the waiters and waitresses knew to leave customers like them as much alone as possible. She arrived at the strip-mall-esque that held the restaurant, and parked as close as possible – if it was a trap, she wanted an escape route or mobile cover. Not to mention, her lower legs were already starting to object to hanging down all day with her knees in full agreement.

Her contact, an old teammate known to his friends as Dior, was sitting by the front waiting for her.

"Hey, stranger – been a long time!"

Once she sat down, Madeline replied in a low tone, "Not so long that I'm going to skip checking your identity; why did I start calling you Dior?"

"Ah….that's an easy one! We were both in Gifu city in Japan, attending a seminar on protocols and procedures when dealing with high-notoriety clients and targets; I said that I was born here, and you said that my name must be Dior, since I was born in the 'City of Fashion'."

"Hmm…Nice to see you again, Dior. You know why I called you?"

He just looked at her like she had grown a second head and replied, "Called me? You sent some sort of bat-rat, mangy-ass bird with a scribbled note in code that only said 'Old Restaurant Second Time' – I had to spend an hour figuring out which of the fourteen joints we used to haunt was the right one. At least the second part of the message was easy – Second Time obviously meant the first seating before two o'clock. How the hell am I supposed to know what you want?"

Madeline nodded her head and answered, "Good. If you couldn't figure it out, than anyone who might be involved wouldn't be able to. What I want, is for you to do three things. First off, I want you to take this folder – I memorized the info already – and check it with the old crowd, see if anything's missing or left out. Second – I want you to send a message to the Hokage."

"The – Jesus, Maddie! What are you into?"

She continued, "Keep quiet, old man. Third thing, and this is the most important one – I want a full workup of where Mr. Satou lives; I need to get some answers, and I need to get them before some non-nin friends of mine get involved. Got it?"

Dior just shook his head, and said, "Maddie…you sure haven't changed one bit – still just like a hurricane."

At that remark, she just looked at him, smiled, and concluded, "Why do you think I moved to Florida?"

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Fourth chapter...online! This one's the longest so far, hopefully I'll get to continue this as the days and months progress - heavy course load, so I might have to slow down for a while. Reviews, as always, are welcome.


	5. Chapter 5: Familiar Situations

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Burn Notice. No profit, save for emotional catharsis, is gained from this story.

With Dior's instructions taken care of, Madeline began to plan her next move. According to the information in the file, however much she could trust it considering how easily she had acquired it, Mr. Satou was an informant within the group Michael was looking into – apparently, the ANBU were putting out feelers as to who these war profiteers were and if they had any connection to the old Akatsuki.

"Not likely!" Madeline muttered under her breath as she drove back home. She had been reassigned to the metaphorical front lines with the ANBU during Akatsuki's long fall – if anyone could recognize their tactics, it would be her. Besides which – shinobi didn't interfere in the outer world; the hidden lands were just that, hidden by massive genjutsu and protected from any incursion. She almost giggled thinking about the work that was required to adapt fuuinjutsu to prevent satellite tracking. An idea occurred to her suddenly; if Mr. Satou was an informant and not an operative, he probably had a team of ANBU watchers protecting him….Sam wouldn't even get close!

Spinning the car around, she could only put her foot straight down on the gas pedal and revert to her old friend Ibiki's favorite word for situations like this: "Kuso!"

Meanwhile, Sam thought he was lost, looking for Mr. Satou's house – which was in fact only a complex genjutsu that allowed the ANBU watch team to search his car without his being tipped-off. As soon as they found his surveillance equipment, the ANBU team leader began to direct his followers to kill Sam; he stopped when the external genjutsu that was protecting the scene from witnesses was breached. Every ANBU member took up their weapons and prepared to fight…a confident-looking older woman with a beach hat on. The team leader, having come up through the ranks during the time of Hatake Kakashi, decided to follow the now-proverbial saying, 'Look underneath the underneath'. The leader challenged her, saying,

"Whoever you are, you are in violation of the outer lands treaties which have been held in perpetuity by the Five Shinobi Nations – we are members of Ansatsu Senjutsu Tokushu Butai from Konohagakure no Sato in Hi no Kuni. Drop any weapons you possess and lay down on the ground."

"Tsuru! I'm older, but I'm not that old yet! You must have gotten pretty out of shape if you can't tell I'm not wearing a Henge."

The team leader looked closer, and suddenly recognized the 'intruder' – his own genin sensei, Westen-san!

"Westen-sensei! I thought you had retired from…active…life to settle down!"

"You mean, you heard I got put on medical disability after my last 'vacation' in Oto no Kuni…"

Tsuru rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, laughing nervously as he did so.

"Sensei, you always did make me feel slow – that certainly hasn't changed! How did you recognize me with my ANBU mask on?"

"Brat, I trained you for years! If I can't recognize your squeaky voice, I really must be going deaf!"

"What are you doing here, in any case? Certainly you're not coming to visit me during an active operation."

Madeline shook her head briefly, and replied, "No…the man you're about to terminate is a friend of mine – he's investigating the same group you are. Don't ask how I know! I've still got friends in low places, and they usually are sober enough to remember how to string a few syllables together. I've already had a message sent to the Hokage about the situation – you should be receiving a reply personally in less than a half-hour."

"…Westen-sensei, since I've known you, you've never been a frivolous woman – a little odd when it came to bingo and canasta, but it seems many shinobi find a release in obsession. As a favor to you, I won't harm your friend here – for now. If the Hokage's message doesn't bode well to him, or doesn't come at all…then I'm sorry, but…"

She gave him an understanding look and reassured him, "I know…don't worry about it…I remember what it was like being ANBU – you do what you're told, when you're told…deviation from your orders is, at best and at worst, a once-in-a-lifetime thing. I get it, brat."

As they waited for the message to arrive, Madeline and Tsuru caught up on old times and the remainder of the ANBU team surreptitiously stretched their muscles in case the situation turned ugly; all the while, Sam kept screaming vulgarity after vulgarity towards some phantom jerk whose phantom car had blocked the road and was going 5 phantom miles an hour.

Not long before the half-hour was up, the team spotted a messenger bird in the sky; as it swooped down, the team leader caught it up in his hand and detached its message. After decoding, memorizing, and destroying the message, he signaled to his team that they were to stand down.

"Westen-sama, I acknowledge your temporary reinstatement and position as supervisor of this operation. On a personal note, I look forward to working with you again!"

"Thanks, Ru-kun….now get Sam on his way – as long as he finds and surveils Mr. Satou, there won't be any suspicion from…the people I've been watching about their operation being compromised. Now, then…let's get to work!"

Fifth chapter up! A little hard to get it there with my college schedule - I may have to postpone any further writing to the weekend! I know people are visiting, so I'll be brief - PLEASE REVIEW! Apparently, according to other authors I've read, abject begging for reviews = success!


	6. Chapter 6: New Haunts

The building that Madeline was facing, despite its bland exterior, made her nerves and her anxiousness increase ten-fold. She was coming back, going to the place that first took her in – her only home. If only the reasons were better, and it wasn't a temporary postion, and….

"Oh, hell with it….it's good to be back, even for a while," she muttered as Tsuru and the rest of the ANBU operatives led her to the so-called 'Accountants' National Business Union Building'. The off-white exterior of the building matched the surrounding buildings almost too perfectly, as if it was a parody doing its best – "but almost doesn't cut it", she thought to herself, "when it comes to discovering what's hidden beneath a lie".

"Westen-sensei…Ah, I mean Westen-san", Tsuru interjected, "in order for you to be allowed in, we'll need to present you to the building's coordinator and planner".

Madeline nodded, familiar even after her long inactivity with the 'way things are done' mentality of the ANBU. Her own department, Torture & Interrogation, was always a bit more lax when it came to supposed hard-and-fast rules – Miterashi Anko being the least example of the leniency experienced by T&I workers. 'Better quirky than crazy', as her old friend Dior used to mention.

"Who's the bigwig in charge of setting up the new branch? Hatake Kakashi?", she inquired, "We…might not get along so well, after the last time we met."

Her new subordinate and former student turned and replied," Hatake-sama? Oh, no! Gee, he's been out of ANBU for years – at first busy with his genin team, then on missions for the Hokage; he's out there now helping deal with Akatsuki. Have you been informed about our situation with them as well?"

"Somewhat….I've kept my contacts open on an informal basis, nothing secret – just what's new at home.", Madeline replied, thinking,'Oh, Ka-…God…It's been years, I've raised two children in this country, and I still call Konoha home; that's just a bit pathetic, really". Outwardly, she kept a perfect poker face as these thoughts occurred to her. T&I was never forgiving to the easily-read or the quickly-distracted.

"Hold on! A genin team? We are talking about Hatake Kakashi, right? His father hasn't risen from the grave to teach good little ninja how to gut themselves with honor? I wasn't the most sociable person in Konoha, but I would think news like that would reach me fairly quickly."

"Ah…no, thank Kami! We have enough trouble with the risen dead due to that snake Orochimaru's machinations…even beyond the grave, that _thing_'s plans hurt our village! No…Hatake Kakashi finally passed a genin team some years back during your infiltration/retrieval mission in Iwa; one's a chuunin now – trained by Tsunade-sama herself as a medic! – and one's pretty much the village hero."

Madeline could practically see the glaring omission in front of her, and even Tsuru's ANBU training wasn't enough to keep her from reading the body language that _screamed_, 'The third was a _traitor! _He betrayed Konoha!'. She decided to leave it alone, but mentally noted his sensitivity to the subject in case she needed to put it to use one day. 'Ha! I really am back….same old mentality, right back in the saddle!', she reflected. As they passed through the atrium down into the stairs for the lower levels of the building, no doubt absent from the original plans and built from scratch by the ANBU themselves for security, she could only think that the layout of the building reminded her of something very familiar that she just couldn't put her finger on. Deciding to drop the third genin as a topic for now, she went back to her original tack.

"So Tsuru, you never answered me…who's the branch 'manager'?"

Tsuru, seemingly reverting to that shy child she knew as a teacher from years long ago, wrapped his arms around his back and pivoted himself on his toes, eager to tell his teacher the news.

"Well, we don't have an ANBU regional director as yet – we're shorthanded due to the war and contact with the outer lands has always been minimal. So far, the designer of the building has stayed on – since no-one's been captured, and it isn't looking too likely that they will be for a while, the director of T&I has graciously deigned to 'watch over us' until we're all set up!"

Madeline could only shake her head at his enthusiasm, not understanding why an ANBU would be so happy at the prospect of T&I horning in on their party - but what confused her was the body language which indicated to her that the person was someone she knew and would get a kick out of seeing.

"Tsuru-sama, Westen-sama…we've arrived at the office!", stated one of the ANBU team members.

The statement brought Madeline out of her reflective haze quickly, startling her that she had gotten so caught up with Tsuru-gaki that her situational awareness had decreased to a minimal level. 'Can't do that anymore, girlie – good way to end up dead!', she rebuked herself mentally.

"Ehh….ANBU-san? How did we get to the 'head' so fast? Shouldn't there be checkpoints, especially for someone brought in by an ANBU team?"

The ANBU member replied,"We've managed to secure the route here via seals and genjutsu…anyone not authorized will wander outwards into one of the booby-trapped hallways to be retrieved later – likewise, anyone who's been authorized as an operative is allowed through the seals automatically. We're still waiting on anti-infiltrator seals, but the delay is likely to last until the end of the war, if SOP maintains its customary speed."

"Hmmm…better for you, anyway! Getting sloppy due to a reliance on sealwork is just as bad as thinking a jutsu is a substitute for good old-fashioned stealth. Well, open up the door – I'm definitely not ready to meet the director of my old department after all this time, she'll kill me!" Madeline joked.

"Westen-sensei! I think your friends have played a joke on you! Despite the plans to transfer responsibility to someone else, the original director was forced to stay on due to enemy action and seniority!", Tsuru corrected smugly as he opened the door.

"MORINO-SAN!"

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Well, it's the end of the semester at college, so I figured a little time spent on this would be okay! Since it's sort of obscure, I'll update this at will and I won't worry so much about reviews or hits...if you like it, good enough - no worries.


	7. Chapter 7: Old Faces

Disclaimer:Hi! This is Scholar of Time and I own -!

shuriken fly across room, leaving an outline of Scholar of Time on the wall behind him

- absolutely nothing! Me, own something? No WAY! voice breaks

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"Westen-sempai….somehow I expected to see you again."

There were few things in life that surprised Madeline Westen on a continual basis – every once in a while, something might crop up that was out of the ordinary but after an initial shock she usually reverted back to her aloof, sarcastic nature. As she considered that, Madeline mentally tallied up those items: the incompetency of the Shinobi Council (not that she'd ever say that), the seeming determination of every kage to die in an all-out battle against a so-called 'invincible foe', and one Morino Ibiki. Madeline had met Ibiki a long time ago, when he was still a genin so new that his headband was still cold on his forehead. 'I was pursuing some missing-nin or another, not that it mattered', she thought,' Ibiki might admit that everyone breaks, but he sure as hell can keep his cards close to his vest. I could tell that right off.' Madeline had sponsored Ibiki in the Torture & Interrogation department once he became a jounin; his previous experience with being tortured and retaining control of the situation had counted in his favor, but in the end it was her first experience with him that gave her the confidence to speak on his behalf.

~Flashback~

'This sucks! How is painting a fence going to improve my ninja skill? This is a training field, I should be training!" quietly grumbled the young Morino, "D-ranks are a waste of time, especially this one! Teamwork's supposed to be the whole point in Konoha, but we're out here painting warnings on training field fences so far apart you'd think the other end was in Kaze no Kuni!"

The Forest of Death stretched outwards in every direction on the opposite side of the fence, with the forests adjoining it appearing almost as small bushes in comparison to the depth and darkness of the deadly woods. Continuing his grumbling, the frustrated genin remained unaware of the war of stealth & attrition taking place above his head in the trees.

'Just two more branches, idiot-san, and I've got you,' thought the infamous trap-maker & interrogator Madeline Westen. Her focus remained completely on the faster of the two missing-nin, each of whom was attempting to take S-ranked scrolls from the ANBU department to their masters in Iwa. Even as she barreled after them, her footfalls were completely obscured by the ambient noise of the forest, and the battle in which she was engaged remained completely silent. No jutsu were used by the missing-nin, save that which would remain on the lowest detectable level of chakra consumption. Likewise, Madeline reserved her strength – ninja may use jutsu often, but she was more than well-equipped in the traditional fashion of ninja-to-ninja combat requiring absolute concentration and usage of delicate skill. Her own reason for keeping the battle quiet was the potential for scandal; the ANBU would not appreciate their weaknesses being pointed out in such a blatant manner. Should the infiltrators be captured, their identities and how they managed ingress into one of the most secure facilities in Konoha would inevitably leak out. Their method would be neutralized, but such data would allow for the estimation of what and where the 'blindspots' of the ANBU security were. That could not be allowed.

The genin below was unaware of any of these machinations or concerns, still coming to grips with the dull side of the shinobi life in the modern age. He was close to fulfilling his mission in any case, as there were only two more posts to cover with chakra-reflective paint and one more warning flag to tie to the fence-wire. As he reached into the bucket he had been given for carrying the flags, an unexpected guest decided to 'drop in'. The sudden crash of the flaming tree branch, complete with flash-fried missing-nin still attached, brought Ibiki to a simple conclusion – there was an active mission going on, and he should run for the nearest jounin in order to render safe the area. As Ibiki stood staring at the fight above him, he fully realized that that was what he should do but between the dead-nin that had just destroyed his fence and his bucket – _Missing-nin Prick!_ – and the 'dogfight' above his head his curiosity had stopped him in place better than any paralyzing jutsu. Just as he began to recover his senses, both living shinobi vanished from his sight. 'Now where did they go?,' he wondered.

'Not that I really want to know, ' he clarified mentally, realizing that their return could easily mean his death. Unluckily, his first question was given more concern by the universe than his later addition to it. The last – now late – missing-nin suddenly appeared before him…staked to a kawarimi log in mid-jutsu.

Ibiki began to run, but was stopped by the leaf-symbol on the hitai-ate of both the victims and the perpetrator who had appeared next to the latest corpse. Shifting his bodyweight to a more stable stance, he cried out to the jounin.

"Oi, Crazy-sama! Who the hell are you lady? Why the hell are all of you wearing leaf-nin forehead protectors, and why did you kill them? You'd better tell me now, or face the consequences!"

Madeline, who was simultaneously impressed with the boy's calm at an extremely unexpected situation and furious at his disobedience to protocol, merely cocked a rakish eye at him. With her hands on his throat and wrapping his arm around his back respectively a second later, she replied to his questions.

"First off, I'm nobody you need to know about. Secondly, traitors and infiltrators won't be tolerated in Konoha. Thirdly….you know and I know that you should have gotten a Jounin – even if I probably would have cut you into nigiri sushi as soon as you turned your back. That one, I want an answer to…"

At first, Ibiki could only think of how fast she had been, and a few milliseconds later on how he would explain his actions to what must be a high-ranking shinobi.

Ibiki's stuttering attempts at speech eventually cleared, and his answer was; "If I ran, you might have gotten away – but by challenging you when I knew you'd be able to kill me I was able to make some noise that might give you away, as well as plant an exploding tag on you."

Westen's shock at this answer was nothing compared to finding out that the child-like genin had placed an exploding tag inside each of his fists, which were currently facing her.

"….Kid, when you grow up…I think you'll be a fine ninja…just don't end up in my department!" she spoke as she, with reluctant respect, handed him her identification papers and authorizations for the kill/capture mission, all details naturally absent.

"What department is that?", Ibiki asked curiously as he quickly scanned the document and faced her with an odd combination of an awed expression and a deadly glare.

"Torture and Interrogation – so you'd better understand that when I say this mission and those two corpses stay off the books on Hokage's orders, I mean to fulfill my duty first and clean up corpses later," Madeline whispered through creepily-smiling teeth.

Ibiki, much to her surprise, responded only with a simple "Hai!" – and then began burning the corpses.

~ Flashback ends ~

"The years have been kind to you, Westen-sempai! Had I known you were in such fine condition, I would have had you reinstated…or at the very least, asked you for dinner, " Ibiki stated with a grin.

"Cut the crap, gaki," Madeline declared, "I'm the one who taught you how to put people off-guard with that whole 'creepy-sweetness' routine – don't make me use that face I showed young 'Yamato' how to do…."

As Ibiki shuddered, well-aware of how well that glare worked with her combination of rounded and angular features, he reflected that perhaps he should get to the point, and quickly at that.

"Very well. Getting to the heart of the matter, I suppose I should ask you how you uncovered ANBU involvement in this operation and who your sources are, but given that your record is virtually beyond reproach and …the limited level of interrogation that I'm allowed in combination with the orders the Godaime has put into place regarding your temporary re-instatement…I don't believe that will be of any use. What I am determined to find out, is why outside interference in an ANBU operation has been undertaken by your son."

The slight tightening of the eyes that might have been expected of a normal shinobi, expressing their tension over potential danger to their family was completely absent in Madeline's face; but Ibiki understood fully how much tension he was putting on her through the dilation of her pupils alone.

Madeline took a deep breath, and let it out – an obvious ploy at conversational psychological warfare which Ibiki let wash over him as he sought the truth of the micro-expressions and slight body language 'tells' that she still retained.

"My son, Michael…he's not a shinobi, and he doesn't know anything about our world – I kept him in the dark, and you'd better not say I'm not good enough to do that! I sacrificed what meant the most to me in order to complete my mission, and I was stuck where I couldn't do any political damage for my troubles. Fine! But I am and always have been loyal to Konoha! Michael got involved due to his investigation into his own affairs as a spy for the US government – don't even give me that look! He doesn't know, he's not looking into us, and I didn't tell him! He and his friends are attempting to find ''Mr. Satou" as part of their investigation into a worldwide war-mongering scheme. I asked for help because I don't want my son hurt….he and Nate are all I've got left…don't ask me to sacrifice them too…"

'A nice performance,' Ibiki contemplated, 'though a little weepy at the end…she seems loyal still, and the background I've compiled seems to match – I'd have a Yamanaka look at her, but I wouldn't trust anyone but Inoichi with Westen-sempai. Hmph…looks like my old sempai is telling the truth for the most part, though I did like that implicit acceptance of their deaths if 'Konoha' wished it…a throw-away lie like that is very bad form, though – I'll have to make sure to rub her nose in it later!'

"ANBU!"

Madeline tensed as the ANBU prepared themselves.

"Dismissed!"

Relief flooded into her veins, making the last few hours of adrenaline-suppressed weariness come crashing down on her body – but she'd be damned if she was anything less than graceful in front of Morino. The ANBU left the room through the doorway, oddly enough – very unlike their typical cocky behavior, though discipline around Morino was always a must which might explain that.

Ibiki looked at her with a considering glare, and said," Maddie-chan….let's talk."

* * *

A bit longer chapter than usual...I'm getting better at this, I think! Another review, which is nice - seems like more people are actually reading this thing and not just skipping on to it accidentally. Ja abayo!


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